Update and Cargo Collective

Hey Everyone,

I know some of you have been following me and probably have wondered why I haven't been posting on my blog. I just wanted to give you all a heads up that since being at VFS I have been wicked busy and trying to build a respectable portfolio.  

I am entering my 3rd Term now and it is suppose to be quite a challenging one.

I won't be able to post as often as I'd like so I'd like to direct you all to my cargo collective site where I have been posting some work I have produced at VFS:

www.cargocollective.com/jullianablaza

In addition, VFS wants us to get into the habit of blogging and started us out with a wordpress blog. I have been trying to write in it from time-to-time, but because I've been busy, it has been difficult to keep up with it.

The site address is quite long and even I tend to forget the address: 

http://dd20jullian.myvfs.ca/blog/

I promise you all that by the end of the year I WILL have my own website where everything will be consolidated and you'll only have to go to one place. But for those following me, thank you for continuing to do so and these are just some sites to follow me while I am at VFS.

Some Photoshop pieces.

Here are some pieces I did during the first 2 months of my time at VFS. Photoshop was brand new to me, so there was definitely a scramble to learn this powerful tool quickly. 

"Product of the Philippines" © 2011 Movie Poster

My latest photoshop endeavor. After a term of photoshop and tutelage under the fantastic and master of PS, Vancouver's 2011 Artist of the Year, Myron Campbell.

Product of the Philippines documentary poster © 2011

Gary Sylvester Profile

A communication design project where we had to create a visual profile of one of our classmates. I did one of Gary Sylvester - a talented artist and designer with a love of the great outdoors.

I did this with about 2 weeks of Photoshop experience - Trying to learn quickly!

Gary Sylvester Profile by Jullian Ablaza © 2011

Buffalo Bill Poster (faux movie poster)

Our final projects for Photoshop 1 - create a movie poster using 10-15 assets provided by our instructor, Myron Campbell. A great exercise in learning to work non-destructively, organized and compositing different images into one cohesive collage.

Theme was western film a la Coen Brothers True Grit.

Buffalo Bill Final Project for Photoshop 1 © Jullian A. 2011

Faux Shark Website - Interface Design 1

We had to redesign a failing website that informs people about the dangers of shark hunting and create an interface that would attract more viewers...

I was very new to photoshop at this point and went through a myriad of changes. Looking back, I see where this interface is lacking in terms of calls to action and hierarchy.

This was for Interface Design... a touch class run by the very knowledgeable Miles Nurse (the dude's a genius).   

Interface Design 1 - Shark Website Landing Page © Jullian Ablaza 2011

Planet Profile - Saturn

One of our early assignments in Photoshop 1 - we had to create our interpretation of any of the planets. I chose to do Saturn, which is Cronus (Kronos) the Greek Titan overlord who fathered Zeus. His story is interesting as he commits infanticide by gobbling up his children, except for Zeus. He was tricked by his wife (and sister) Rhea (I guess that makes him incestuous as well) into eating a stone instead of little baby Zeus.

It's probably the first full piece I've ever done in Photoshop. Not a bad start, but still got loads to learn!

Saturn Project © Jullian A. 2011

VFS Term 1 - Process

One term down, five to go.... 


This has, without a doubt, been the most challenging and stressful two months of my life... and it's just the beginning.


More than being the most challenging and stressful two months, it has also been the most fulfilling thus far.  I have never felt more alive and more pushed to reach my potential than I have been in this first term at Vancouver Film School.


For those of you who do not know, I started a one-year intensive Digital Design program at Vancouver Film School where I hope to become a motion graphics designer.  


I came to VFS to learn the technical aspects of becoming a designer which meant learning various programs that I had hardly every touched like photoshop and illustrator to the more complex after effects and Cinema 4D.  I knew where my weaknesses lay and it was definitely in my lack of experience with these software.


What I did not expect was how they were training us to become more than just technically savvy designers, but to be thinkers and innovators.


In this term, we took on various team projects that were unlike any other any of us had ever seen before.  We learned how to analyze the simplest human interactions to learn how to innovate experiences with the hopes of changing human behavior in our User Experience class.


At first we were not sure how this all fit into the puzzle of design and then quickly realized that this was a valuable step in innovating design because our ultimate goal, as designers, is to make interactions with this technological world intuitive and seamless.


I could go on for hours about how much I learned from User Experience, but I want to go on and talk about process.


Process... What is this simple word? We all know what it means... We all know its importance... but we don't all use it and we all overlook it. 


If there is one thing that I have now prioritized in any piece of my work, it is PROCESS and keeping track of my workflow.


We learned to breakdown our projects step-by-step... sound obvious? Well, executing it is not.  From brainstorming to story boards to choices to production - every step is critical.


This term was about using process to get closer to our vision. 


One thing I noticed about my work prior to VFS was that I was producing decent work, but I was not reaching the ultimate vision that I had in my head.  I remember talking to someone about this and saying that the more I work and learn, the closer I am to nailing the vision in my head - but I have yet to hit the exact mark.  For some reason, what I visualized looked SIMILAR but was never EXACTLY what I had envisioned.  Yes, some turned out really good and others... not so good, but I did not know WHY I wasn't quite hitting the mark.


Until I learned to take advantage of PROCESS.


This year I hope to hit my mark with all my projects at VFS.  Prior to VFS, I did a decent job of writing shot lists and planning, but it wasn't enough - it wasn't the complete Process Package.


I know it has been a while since I posted something, but I will try my best to post the process of my future work here at VFS.


I know this was a rather wordy post, but there was a lot to say after these 2 months.  I could go on for hours, but I think I'll leave this post as is.